Revealed
by Eosophobia-3
Summary: It's Halloween and the three friends are enjoying the fun filled night like any other people...Unfortunately other people have other plans for the night... the friends must take the chance and run, or stay and risk getting caught... NO SPOILERS
1. The Eve of the Eve

**I do not own Being Human, I only wish I did :)**

**This story is set just after the first series… enjoy**

**Chapter 1 – The Eve of the Eve**

Annie scurried into the living room where her friends sat staring at the TV, their eyes blank as they watched the images change. George was lying on the couch with his dressing gown on and Mitchell was lounging in the red chair with a hot cup of tea clasped between his gloved hands. They were forced to look at the ghost as she stood in front of the television.

Annie waved her hands excitedly, "So, what are we doing?"

Mitchell leaned to try and see past Annie to the TV but it was useless. He shrugged his shoulders in defeat, "For what?"

Annie frowned and made a "tsk" sound before a huge smile spread across her face, "Tomorrow!" Mitchell's face remained blank but George sat up on the couch and grinned proudly,

"Oh, my costume should be arriving today!"

Annie turned to him, "What are you going to be?"

"It's a secret", George flounced out of the room and made his way upstairs, leaving Mitchell dumbfounded in the chair. The vampire raised his eyebrows towards Annie and she sighed dramatically,

"You _do_ know its Halloween tomorrow right? I mean, what with you being a vampire and all, you_ should _know when your national holiday is", her eyes widened and then rolled as Mitchell's face fell and he slid further into the chair.

"I think I'll skip it this year", he took a sip of his now cold tea, wincing as the icy liquid slid down his throat. Annie's smile became a scowl and she glared at him through dark eyes,

"You can't just _skip_ Halloween Mitchell! It's part of who you are!"

Mitchell got up from the chair and walked into the kitchen, shouting over his shoulder, "Dressing up and looking like a twat is _not_ who I am". Annie was suddenly standing in front of the sink, preventing Mitchell from washing up his cup, she jabbed him firmly in the chest,

"You know what you're problem is? You're too _old_"

Mitchell shook his head and grinned his lopsided grin, "Don't be ridiculous", Annie stared at him solemnly and his grin faded, "I'm not _old_!"

"When were you born?"

"I- that's not the point!" He placed the mug on the counter and folded his arms across his chest, "Okay then, ask me something, something that _old_ people wouldn't know"

Annie grinned devilishly, "Alright. Name one band in the top ten"

Mitchell smiled arrogantly and straightened his shoulders, "Easy. The Spice Girls"

She couldn't control the snort that escaped her lips, "The Spice Girls?!"

Mitchell shuffled on his feet and nodded sternly, "Yeah"

Annie shook her head and patted the vampire gently on the shoulder, so as not to hurt his aching _old_ bones, "Its okay Mitchell. I understand. You'd rather wear your slippers and smoke your pipe than enjoy some fun Halloween activities with your housemates". Mitchell opened his mouth to speak but Annie waved a dismissive hand his way, "No, no. It's fine. George and I will have a great time without you". With that she turned to face the sink and began to wash up Mitchell's mug, his shoulders sagged and he sat down at the kitchen table.

George stepped into the kitchen, having got dressed and found his glasses. He waved happily in the direction of his friends, "I'm off to work, I'll see you later".

Annie bounced onto her tiptoes and raised a hand, as if asking a question in school, "Oh, George? Can you buy some Halloween decorations and some flour and eggs on your way home? I want to try a recipe I saw in _Closer_", she smiled widely and Mitchell placed his head on the kitchen table. George glanced at him and frowned,

"What's the matter with you?"

Mitchell merely groaned in reply and Annie spoke on his behalf, "He doesn't _do_ Halloween apparently". George's upper body seemed to jolt slightly and he folded his arms,

"Oh. Well _we-_", he pointed his finger rapidly between himself and Annie, "-do! Just because we don't need costumes doesn't mean we can't have some fun", he turned to Annie, "I'll get the ingredients and stuff after work, bye". George left the house swiftly, leaving Annie and Mitchell in an awkward silence.

Annie sat at the table, in the chair opposite Mitchell and rested her head on her hands. Mitchell raised his eyes and looked into her deep chocolate ones. The ghost cocked her head slightly, trying to decipher what the vampire was thinking, when he said, "What?"

Annie blinked briefly and sat up straight, crossing her legs in the process, "Nothing. I was just wondering why you hate Halloween so much"

Mitchell sighed and ran his hands through his hair, "It's just not the best time of year for me"

"Why?"

"When I was with Herrick he, _we_ used to think it was funny to get people on Halloween"

"And when you say get", Annie dragged her index finger across her throat and Mitchell nodded earnestly.

"I killed so many people on those nights, it's just hard for me to remember, you know?" He dropped his eyes to the table and Annie lifted his chin with her hand,

"Hey, you're not the same person you were back then", she smiled and looked into his ancient eyes, eyes that were filled with guilt and sorrow, "You're the kindest person I know".

Mitchell smiled and held Annie's hand to his cheek, feeling the cold tingling of her skin against his. He pulled her forward and kissed her forehead gently, "Thanks Annie. But I'm still not dressing up".

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	2. All Hallows Eve

**Chapter 2 – All Hallows Eve**

It was around six thirty on the morning of Halloween and Annie Sawyer was already busy in the kitchen. She laid _Closer_ magazine on the kitchen counter and started to thumb through it to the recipe she had seen the day before; it was for Halloween cookies.

Upstairs Mitchell awoke with a jolt; he'd been having a nightmare where the faces of every person he'd killed had appeared in front of him and he lay on top of the sheets in a cold sweat. He lay staring at the ceiling for a few minutes, trying to steady his breathing and then he sat up, hanging his legs off the edge of the bed. He leant his elbows on his thighs and ran his hands through his sleep-tousled hair, trying to physically rub the screaming images from his mind.

George woke with a start as a loud clatter erupted from downstairs. He got out of bed and pulled on his dressing gown, almost falling over in the process, and bounded down the stairs. In the kitchen Annie stood in a small cloud of white powder – flour. She saw the look of terror on George's face as he took in the mess: the large pot bowl, their _only _pot bowl, lay in pieces on the floor, spilling flour everywhere. Amongst the flour were two eggs and a wooden spoon. Annie raised her flour-covered hands in surrender, "It slipped out of my hands, sorry".

George raised his hand to his face to remove his glasses but realised he wasn't wearing them. He placed his hand at his side and began to help Annie to clear up the mess.

When the mess had been tidied away Annie started again; she weighed the flour and the sugar and poured them into the bowl and added what she imagined was a pinch of salt. She then added the eggs and stirred thoroughly, smiling to herself as she did so.

At about quarter to twelve Mitchell shuffled into the kitchen, Annie turned to him, her face covered in flour and grimaced at the sight of his drawn face, "God you look terrible, are you okay?"

Mitchell looked at her with drooping eyes and scratched at his stubbled face, "Yeah, I just need some coffee". Annie got to work making his coffee as he lowered himself into a chair next to the kitchen table. She glanced at him as she poured the boiling water into a mug and handed it to him cautiously,

"Are you sure you're okay?"

Mitchell took the coffee with less than stable hands and took a long gulp of the piping hot liquid. He closed his eyes as the coffee slid slowly down his throat, only to be met with those screaming faces again. His eyes shot open and he put the mug down carefully. He sighed and, in doing so, inhaled the sweet aroma of whatever it was Annie had in the oven, "What's that?"

Annie blinked, "What?"

"That smell", he sniffed deeply, "Christ it smells divine". Annie blushed and went to check on the cookies she had placed in the oven; they were golden brown and seemed to be ready so she slid them out carefully and placed them on the side to cool down. She turned to return to where Mitchell sat but he was standing right behind her and she walked straight into his chest. Her arms shot up in front of her and Mitchell laughed quietly, "Sorry. I came to see what you'd made".

Annie stood for a moment with her hand on the vampire's chest and then turned to face her creation. The cookies were not-quite-round circle shapes with what seemed to be random holes gouged into them. Mitchell reached for one and Annie slapped his hand away, "Hey! They're for tonight!"

Mitchell pursed his lips and eyed the cookies warily, "What are they? Moons?"

Annie's mouth fell open and she swung round to face him, flicking her hair in his face in the process, "No they are _not_ moons! They're pumpkins!"

Mitchell's brow creased and he cocked his head to one side as though that would help with the cookie's identification, "Really?"

"Yes really!" Annie pushed Mitchell aside and stormed into the living room where George was watching Top Gear on the TV. She crossed her arms and flopped onto the couch next to him. Mitchell followed slowly and sat down in the armchair with his cup of coffee.

"What's going on?" George glanced from ghost to vampire and back again.

"Mitchell doesn't seem to think my cooking skills are up to his standard", Annie pursed her lips and glared at Mitchell who was sitting, half asleep, in the armchair. He responded with a frown and continued to drink his coffee. George looked at his friends in confusion and crept into the kitchen, away from the argument.

George saw the golden brown cookies on the counter and picked one up with his thumb and forefinger. He sniffed it feebly and popped it into his mouth. As he bit into the soft yet crunchy texture he began to feel the salt creeping across his tongue. He retched and spat the remainder of the cookie into the sink, wiping at his tongue with his hand. Annie stood behind him with hoping eyes, "So? What do you think?"

George turned and smiled, crumbs lining his lips, "Mmm, yes. Lovely".

*****

The next agenda on Annie's list was to decorate the house; she began by hanging streamers on every available wall and even managed to rope Mitchell in to help. He complained but held the streamers still as Annie tacked them to the wall. She forced George to go out and buy three pumpkins and then coaxed the boys into carving them with her.

George carved an odd looking face into his that Mitchell described as "Pinocchio on crack" and Annie carved a very cute smiley face into hers. Mitchell simply sat at the table and stabbed his pumpkin continuously with the potato peeler, smiling slightly as he did so. When they were finished Annie placed them on the doorstep, with the exception of Mitchell's, which she put in the corner of the living room.

At around seven thirty there was a knock on the door and George answered it, looking very sly as he approached the door. He took a parcel from whoever it was and rushed upstairs. Mitchell, who was sitting on the sofa reading a magazine, raised an eyebrow and looked at Annie sceptically, "Costume?"

"Costume", Annie agreed, "Speaking of which", she blinked out of sight and returned a moment later with a large white sheet over her head with two large eye holes cut into it. "Ta da", she raised her arms, "What do you think?"

Mitchell couldn't fight back the smile that spread across his lips as he watched Annie parade around in her sheet, "You're a ghost?"

"Well duh", she walked over to the sofa and perched herself next to the vampire, making sure as to not crease her sheet, "I wonder what George is going to be-"

Before she could finish George appeared at the foot of the stairs. He was wearing a skin tight leather playsuit that gripped in all the wrong places and he had two triangles stuck on his head, _ears_ Mitchell assumed.

Annie giggled, "You're a cat".

George placed his hands firmly on his hips, "No, I'm a _bat_"

Mitchell bit his bottom lip and grinned, "_No_, you're a cat. You've got a tail for Christ's sake!"

George spun around desperately trying to find the tail on the costume and his shoulders sagged as he realised his mistake, "But- I- He- I specifically asked for a _bat_ costume! I very _manly_ bat costume!"

Annie let out a snort of laughter and waved a sheeted-hand at Mr Cat, "Its fine George. You can be a very-", she giggled again, "-manly cat".

Both Mitchell and Annie fell into a fit of giggles and George marched back upstairs to get changed. He returned ten minutes later red-faced, with the cat ears firmly placed on his head. Mitchell switched on the television, where Fright Night was playing, and Annie snuggled into him as they lay on the couch.

It was half past eight and something pointless was happening in the film when someone knocked on the door. Annie jumped to her feet and ran into the kitchen to get the cookies. She brought them to the door, took a deep breath and opened it. Outside stood two small girls dressed as witches, they chimed "Trick or Treat?"

Mitchell groaned and pressed his hands against his eyes, _it's begun_ he thought.

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	3. Trick or Treat

**Chapter 3 – Trick or Treat**

Annie closed the door for the third time in twenty minutes as the trick or treaters moved on; she turned and placed the tray of cookies on the table awkwardly, trying to make sure her sheet didn't get all tangled up, and then she returned to her seat next to Mitchell. He moved over slightly and draped his arm around the ghost's shoulders as George flicked through the channels looking for a horror film of some description,

"We can either have 28 Days Later or The Grudge", he looked to Mitchell for confirmation.

"Is it the Sarah Michelle Gellar one?" Annie rolled her eyes underneath her sheet as Mitchell displayed his very male attitude. George flicked through the TV magazine, thumbing the pages as he went,

"Erm, yes"

"The Grudge it is then", Mitchell grinned sheepishly at Annie and reached over her to turn out the light, "Ooh, spooky". Annie lifted the sheet over her head and laid it over her legs as she cuddled closer to Mitchell, she really wasn't a fan of horror movies.

After about an hour the three friends were rooted to their seats; George sat with his legs curled underneath him and his hands over his face, peering through the mesh of his fingers. Annie had replaced the sheet over her head and was peering warily through the eye holes, whereas Mitchell sat on the end of the couch with a disbelieving smile on his lips. Every now and then Mitchell would speak, "Well that's not real blood". Annie sighed,

"Well _of course_ its not going to be _real _blood, is it? It's a film Mitchell"

"Right, sorry", he sat back and began to fall asleep as the light from the TV cast blue shadows across the living room walls.

George practically screamed as someone knocked loudly on the door and Mitchell jolted awake. Annie got to her feet, took off the sheet and went to the door, cookie tray in hand. Two boys of about fifteen stood outside in tracksuits; one was holding a Tesco carrier bag and the other had his arms folded across his chest. Annie held out the cookie tray, "Aren't you two a little old to be trick or treating?"

The boy with the bag stepped forward and cocked his head at Annie, "What's it to you?"

Annie raised her hand and offered the boys a cookie each, "Sorry"

The boy with his arms folded unfolded them and reached out for a cookie; he took one and examined it, "What's this?" He threw it back at Annie and it hit her leg, leaving an imprint of crumbs.

Annie backed away slightly, into the hall, causing Mitchell to see the worried look on her face; he got to his feet quickly and was standing in front of her in an instant, "What's going on?"

One of the boys spoke up, "We don't want fucking biscuits, we want money"

Mitchell laughed, not amused, and stepped into the doorway, "What did you say?"

"You heard Goth boy!" The boy with the carrier bag spat at Mitchell and George had to get to his feet and restrain his friend from attacking the boy before he did something he would regret. George pushed Mitchell aside and stood forward, his cat ears still on top of his head,

"Piss off!" George stood up straight and the boys laughed at him, Mitchell leaned over George's shoulder and spoke through gritted teeth,

"You'd better fuck off or I'll be forced to do something I'll regret". The boys saw the look in his eyes and walked off down the street, shouting as they went. George slammed the door shut and went to sit back down; he tore the cat ears from his head and kicked them across the floor. Mitchell grabbed Annie's shoulders and forced her to look into his hazel eyes, "You okay?" She nodded and a smile spread across her face,

"Yeah, thanks to my brave bodyguards", she sighed and skipped back into the living room. George saluted her as she sat down and Mitchell grinned, shaking his head at Annie's forgiving nature. He didn't know how she did it, how she could just carry on when someone had been so fucking _rude_ to her. He guessed it was just another one of those Annie things that he would never figure out.

The Grudge finished and Annie "popped" into the kitchen to make some tea. Mitchell stretched on the sofa, groaning as his muscles pulled and his bones cracked. He smiled at George who had fallen asleep on the chair with his mouth open and his glasses to one side.

A dull thud came from upstairs, like a bird hitting one of the windows, and Mitchell cocked his head to one side to listen. Another one. This time it sounded more like something splattering against the kitchen window and he went to investigate. Annie stood with two cups of tea in her hand; she had turned to the window only to find a thin transparent globdule of something or other sliding down the glass. She turned to Mitchell, "What is it?"

Mitchell frowned and stepped closer to the window above the sink, "I dunno". He reached out his hand as if to touch the substance from the opposite side of the glass but quickly pulled it back as George screamed in the living room.

Annie ran towards George's screams to find George standing, his glasses tipped to one side, with a bemused look on his face. He pointed to the window where another gloopy mess was beginning to trail down the glass, "What the hell?!"

Four more splats hit the living room window before Mitchell finally realised what they were, "Eggs", he said.

George physically shuddered and scrunched his nose up, "Oh, that's- that's just disgusting". Annie nodded in agreement and the corner of her lips pulled down in revulsion.

Voices could be heard outside as more and more eggs hit the windows and front wall of the pink house. Mitchell stormed to the front door and swung it open, almost knocking it off its hinges and creating a small dent in the wall. He looked around in the dark until his eyes rested on the faces of the two boys that had called earlier, "You!" Mitchell pointed at them and started to step out of the house, "You little bastards! I'll kill you!"

George chased after Mitchell and pushed at his chest weakly, "Please Mitchell, just leave it". The boys jeered and laughed and stuck their fingers up at the two friends before running off down the street. George pushed Mitchell, who was furious, back into the house and shut the door. "They're not worth it Mitchell".

Annie placed a light hand on Mitchell's shoulder, "Yeah, the little shits'll get their comeuppance sooner or later".

Mitchell tried to barge past George, "Let's make it sooner", but Annie gripped his arm tightly, forcing him to stay put.

The three friends walked into the kitchen where Annie made a fresh cup of tea as George and Mitchell sat down at the table. She started to chat to them about something but Mitchell couldn't hear her, he simply sat, waiting for the moment his friends would look away so that he could catch the boys that had egged their peaceful house and teach them some manners.

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	4. A Dish Best Served Bloody

**Chapter 4 – A Dish Best Served Bloody**

Mitchell lay on top of his bed listening to the faint sound of George snoring in the other room; he turned onto his side and stared at the neon digits of his alarm clock: 1:36am. Annie would be in her room by now, sitting on her chair or pottering about with the few unopened boxes of odds and ends that Mitchell had never quite gotten around to unpacking.

He swung his legs off the end of the bed and walked quietly to the door, making sure as to miss the creaky floorboard. He poked his head out of the door and looked left then right before racing down the stairs. He pulled on his leather jacket and rooted around in each pocket for the door keys; he didn't want to wake anyone when he got back by having to knock on the door. His pockets were empty. "Shit", he whispered into the dark hallway.

"Looking for these?" Annie appeared in the archway to the kitchen; she held her hand out and, on the end of one finger, there were the keys. Mitchell smiled weakly and slid the keys off her slender finger,

"Thanks". He started to open the door but Annie placed a cold and tingling hand on the vampire's forearm. It felt like someone blowing onto his skin and the hairs on his arm stood on end.

Annie spoke quietly, so as not to wake George, "Where are you going?"

"Just for a walk, I can't sleep", the corner of his mouth curled up and he looked deep into the ghost's eyes, "I'll be back soon". He opened the door fully and shoved the keys into his jacket pocket.

Annie smiled and stood in the doorway as Mitchell walked down the steps onto the pavement, "See you soon then".

"Yeah, bye". Mitchell started to walk down the street, pulling his jacket tighter around his body as the biting wind nipped at his torso. Annie shut the front door and made herself a useless cup of tea.

As Mitchell turned the corner onto Rotherum Street a distinct smell filtered into his nostrils. Teenage boys. He wrinkled his nose but continued to walk towards the smell; after all, this was what he was waiting for.

The two boys that had caused havoc earlier in the evening were about 100 yards from where Mitchell was standing. The one that had been carrying the carrier bag was leaning against a dark blue car and the other was sitting on the curb, throwing stones into the road. The streetlight nearest to them gave them an orange hue that reminded Mitchell of the pumpkin he had stabbed vigorously earlier on.

Mitchell walked slowly towards them, so as not to disturb whatever it was they were doing. As he got closer he could hear their conversation: "Those daft bastards didn't know what hit them!" The boy with the stones laughed as he spoke, causing the boy leaning against the car to join in; he made a throwing action with his arms, "Yeah, they thought we were pussies but we showed them!"

Mitchell stepped into the light of the streetlight and the boys stopped talking. They stood up and walked towards each other quickly. The boy with the stones threw one at Mitchell but he gracefully sidestepped it as it hurtled through the air. He spoke quietly, with the tone of a disapproved parent, "You shouldn't have done that".

The boy that had been leaning against the car, who Mitchell realised was the taller of the two, stepped forward, "Oh yeah? What you going to do about it Goth boy?"

Mitchell sprang forward with a speed that almost knocked the boy over and grabbed the boy by the throat. He lifted him off the ground, causing him to kick and claw at Mitchell's arm. The other boy stepped back in terror and sank to his knees. Mitchell looked into the dangling boy's eyes, causing his own to turn black, "If I ever see you again, I'll make sure I'm the last thing you see, got it?" The boy's eyes widened and he nodded feebly before Mitchell dropped him to the pavement. The boy held his throat and tears dripped from his eyes as he watched Mitchell walk towards the other boy.

Mitchell stepped towards the other boy, who was now curled up on the pavement with his hands over his head. The vampire lifted the boy's head up, pulling his hair, and looked into his terrified eyes with his own black eyes, "You'll never come near me or my friends again, do you understand?"

The boy sniffed and his lip trembled as he answered, "Y-yes".

Mitchell smiled and shoved the boy towards his friend; they both sat, wide eyed, staring towards the vampire with the black eyes. Mitchell leaned forward and smiled an evil smile, allowing his canine's to elongate slightly, before turning around and walking away.

*****

Mitchell walked back into the house at around 3:30am; he opened the door and walked into the hallway before closing it gently behind him. He hung up his jacket and began to walk upstairs. Before he could get his foot on the second step a familiar voice whispered behind him,

"What happened to your hand?" Mitchell turned to see Annie standing holding a mug and a tea towel with a worried look on her face. She gestured to his left hand which had a few light scratches across the back of it and Mitchell shrugged,

"I must've caught it against the wall or something".

Annie frowned and placed the mug on the table near the front door before taking his hand and dabbing at it with the towel. It felt cold and damp against Mitchell's skin but it didn't hurt; Annie gently rubbed away the beads of blood from his hand and then smiled an accomplished smile, "There. Better?"

Mitchell smiled, "Much better, thanks".

He continued up the stairs and into his room where he slumped onto the bed. He lay back and closed his eyes, hoping for sleep, but all he could think about was the look of horror on those boy's faces as they'd stared into the face of the monster he truly was.

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	5. Normality

**Chapter 5 – Normality**

It felt like Mitchell had just gotten to sleep when his alarm clock bounced off the bedside table, chirping and jittering as it hit the floor. He moaned and flopped his arm out of the bed to try and reach the stupid thing. When he finally reached it his fingers fumbled around blindly for the off switch but to no avail, and so he threw it against the wall with a loud clatter. He winced as the noise reverberated around the room and forced himself to get out of bed and look at the damage.

A few springs and screws lay on the shallow carpet and the majority of the little clock was crumpled in the corner, its little red numbers flashing wildly. Mitchell sat up in bed, his chest bare and his hair tousled by sleep. He rubbed his hands across his stubbly chin and stared at the blinking numbers on the clock.

He made his way to the bathroom and took a quick shower and pulled on his long sleeved yellow t shirt and black jeans before padding slowly down the stairs. Annie and George were busying away in the kitchen making tea and toast, the sweet aroma of treacle filled the room as George opened the Golden Syrup jar.

George turned as Mitchell walked into the kitchen and sat at the table, "Morning", said George.

Mitchell lay his forehead on the table and waved a floppy hand in George's direction. George took the toast out from under the grill and started to slop sticky treacle over the first slice, he spoke to Mitchell as he did so, "What's the matter with you?"

Annie took a cup of tea to the kitchen table and placed in front of the vampire gently before turning to answer George's question, "He couldn't sleep last night". George raised his eyebrows and nodded before turning to complete his treacle spreading on the other slice of toast.

Mitchell sat up and wrapped his hands around the steaming cup of tea; he took a long gulp and smiled in Annie's direction. She smiled sheepishly and began to fiddle with the end of her grey cardigan, embarrassed with the look of pure joy in Mitchell's eyes. _Ah_, she thought, _the wonders of a cup of tea._

George carried his toast, on a plate of course, and his cup of camomile tea to the table and sat down next to his friends; Mitchell swiped a slice of treacle-drenched toast and took a huge bite, much to George's distaste. Annie could see George was about to kick off and so decided to distract him,

"So", she said, "What's the plan of action for today?"

George stopped looking at Mitchell, who was shoving the last piece of toast into his mouth, and a smile spread across his face, "Nina and I are going to the beach. It's sunny and it's Saturday, therefore the beach it is".

Annie sighed, remembering the time she and Owen had gone to the beach. It had been raining and so the sand was all gloopy and all Owen had wanted to do was find the nearest pub, not the romantic day Annie had had planned. She turned to Mitchell, "What about you?"

Mitchell wiped his sticky fingers on the table cloth, causing George to have some sort of minor heart attack, and shrugged, "I dunno. Nothin'".

Annie's shoulders sagged and she screwed up her nose towards Mitchell. She stood up and started to wash up the sticky plate in the sink. The doorbell rang and George practically skipped to open it: it was Nina. She kissed George lightly on the lips and waved towards Mitchell who was sauntering into the living room. He saluted her coolly and plopped onto the couch.

Annie bounced out of the kitchen and gave Nina a girly hug, "Hey Nina! We hear you're off to the beach".

Nina smiled, "Yeah. George thought it would be fun, even if it isn't sunbathing weather".

"Well", Annie had a forlorn look in her eyes, "Have a nice time". The ghost looked at her feet and fumbled with the sleeves of her cardigan.

Nina felt a pang of pity for the ghost, after all, _she_ wouldn't be going on any dates to the beach, or any dates at all for that matter. Nina placed a firm hand on George's forearm and gestured with her eyes towards Annie. George frowned and looked blankly at his girlfriend, "What?"

Nina sighed and took his hand, "Hey, erm, Annie? Why don't you come with us? To the beach I mean". George's mouth fell open and began to move as if to speak but, with a look of authority from Nina, he fell silent.

Annie's face lit up and she drew Nina into a huge bear hug, pushing George out of the way in the process. Nina smiled towards George over Annie's shoulder and George forced a drunken grin.

Annie "popped" into the living room, in front of the TV so that Mitchell couldn't see Homes Under the Hammer, and started to pull him off the couch by his arm. He tried to resist but gave up with a loud sigh as she dragged him into the hallway, "Come, on Mitchell, we're going to the beach!" Annie beamed as she spoke and George turned to Nina for backup but she only smiled towards the vampire and ghost. George rolled his eyes.

Mitchell tried to make up an excuse about not being able to go with them because he was tired or too old but Annie was a hard nut to crack; she told him that he was unsociable and boring and that he should get out of the house more. This was _Annie_ talking to _Mitchell_ about leaving the house. He finally gave up and agreed to go with them.

*****

They decided to take Mitchell's car as it wasn't that far to drive, only an hour or so, and Mitchell refused to go on the Metro. The four friends piled into the small yet comfy car: Nina and George in the back, Annie in the passenger seat and Mitchell in the driver's seat. Annie had persuaded George to let her pack a picnic and she sat with the basket on her knee, along with four beach towels. George eyed the towels sceptically and leaned through the front seats as Mitchell started to drive down the street,

"You _do_ realise it's about minus six outside? We were only going to walk along the beach, not sunbathe".

Annie shrugged and turned to face her friend, "So? Look, I hardly ever get out George, I'm allowed to sunbathe if I want", she nodded her head firmly and turned to face the front. George sighed and leaned back, resting his head on Nina's shoulder.

After about three quarters of an hour, after hearing multiple stories about how Annie loved the beach and the feeling of the sand between her toes and the sea between her toes and God knows what else between her toes, Mitchell finally spoke up,

"Shit".

Annie turned to face him, he looked angry and fed up and his eyes were almost closed against the glare of the cold sun through the windscreen, "What?"

Mitchell blinked rapidly and continued driving as he spoke, "Forgot my bloody sunglasses".

Annie made an "o" shape with her mouth and Nina asked, "We could go back for them?" she rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly as George glared in her direction.

Mitchell shrugged, "I'll be fine", he rubbed his right eye with the back of his hand and squinted forward through the windscreen.

*****

George sighed as they finally pulled into the car park that was situated just above the beach. Annie stepped out of the car, struggling slightly with the basket and towels and George and Nina followed after, George stretching as he stepped onto the concrete. Mitchell got out of the car slowly and squinted towards the sky; his skin felt prickly and his eyes felt like they were burning in their sockets.

Mitchell locked the car and they made their way down to the beach, Annie jogged ahead and laid out the four towels. She seemed prepared to get some serious sun bathing done. George, who had been lumbered with the picnic basket, placed it on the ground with a heavy thump and turned to Annie,

"What the hell is in that thing?"

Annie parked herself on a bright yellow towel with a smiling sun on it and began to list the things in the basket with her fingers, "Well, I packed some sandwiches and some juice-", she ticked them off on her fingers, "-and some beer for the boys-", Mitchell smiled, "-and some fruit and a couple of Nutri Grain bars and some little cakes-", she smiled as George and Nina sat down on the matching blue beach towels, "-oh, and some plates and cutlery".

Nina smiled and nodded in appreciation, whereas George simply sat with his mouth hanging open. Mitchell laughed and lay back on Annie's old Disney Princess towel with his eyes closed, "Jesus Annie, you do know we're not actually _moving_ to the beach don't you?"

Annie stuck out her tongue and began to unpack the basket. She handed George and Mitchell their beers, which Mitchell downed in three huge gulps, and she began to set out her little banquet.

After lunch, which turned out to be delicious yet slightly warm having spent an hour or so in the basket, George and Nina took a stroll along the beach, leaving Annie and Mitchell to sunbathe, not one of Mitchell's favourite past times.

Annie glanced towards the vampire who was lying on his back with his arms crossed over his face. She noticed his hands were shaking slightly and she moved onto her knees and touched his arm lightly, "Mitchell?"

He looked over at her with a drawn face and red eyes. He blinked a few times and finally managed to focus on the ghost's face, "What?"

Annie was taken aback slightly by his ill-looking face and she opened her mouth silently a few times before speaking, "Are you okay? You look awful".

He smiled, "Thanks".

Annie stared into the distance where George and Nina were just small dots, "Maybe it wasn't my _best_ idea, bringing you here".

Mitchell shrugged, "Its fine. I'm just not much of a sunbather that's all", he sat up and ran his hands through his hair, "I think I'm gonna wait in the car until they get back", he turned and rolled up his towel before making his way back to the car park. Annie watched him walk up the steps to the car park, with a little less grace than usual, and hugged her knees to herself tightly as the biting wind shuffled her dark curls slightly.

Once in the car Mitchell sighed and let his head flop back onto the head rest; he felt exhausted and drained, as though the sun was actually pulling the life from him. He switched on the radio and flicked through the channels before finding the news. A man's posh London accent poured out of the speakers,

"-it seems Halloween _is_ the night for ghouls and monsters. Two boys in Bristol say they were attacked by a man with fangs. They told the police that the man was a vampire and that he had tried to suck their blood and kill them. Police found the boys in the early hours of this morning after their parents had reported them missing. The Bristol police say they are looking for a man in his mid-twenties to early thirties, about six foot in height with dark hair and a leather coat. The boys are currently in hospital after having such a shock and police say they will not rest until the attacker is found-"

Mitchell switched off the radio with a loud _click_ and stared at it for a moment. He gripped the steering wheel and hit it hard with his fist, "Fuck!"

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	6. Regrets

**Chapter 6 – Regrets**

Mitchell remained silent on the drive home and smiled sweetly as they dropped Nina off at her house. When they finally got home Mitchell carried the picnic basket into the pink house and took it into the kitchen where he placed it on the table. Annie took the towels upstairs and put them in the washing basket and George flopped tiredly onto the sofa where the ghost soon joined him.

Mitchell stood in the kitchen alone; his mind filled with questions and fears. Would the police figure out it was him? Did they know what he really was? Were Annie and George in danger? He slammed his fist against the kitchen counter and hung his head. He heard George's voice grow louder in the living room and went to see what the commotion was about.

George was sitting on the edge of the sofa and Annie was sitting on the floor in front of him; they were both staring intently at the television. Mitchell sat down beside George, "What's going on?"

George pointed to the screen where two policemen were talking about an attack on two teenage boys. Mitchell felt around the cushions for the remote but Annie was holding it in her hand. Mitchell started to speak, "What else is on?"

Annie shushed him and George spoke quietly, "They say some boys were attacked by a vampire last night".

Mitchell scoffed and waved his hand dismissively, "It was Halloween, _everyone_ was a vamp-". He stopped as a photograph of the two boys that had been attacked popped onto the screen; they were wearing tracksuits as they sat on a quad bike. George gasped and Annie half turned towards her friends, not taking her eyes off the TV,

"Aren't they-?"

Mitchell reached for the remote in Annie's hand but she held it out of his reach. George leaned forward, "Yes. Yes, they were here last night, with the eggs!"

Mitchell sat back on the sofa and his hands balled into fists as one of the boys spoke on the TV, "He was tall with scruffy hair", the boy shook a little as he spoke, "he picked us up and then showed us his _fangs_", he pronounced the last word with care, as though it might get misinterpreted somehow.

George sat back slightly and stared at Mitchell with wide eyes. Mitchell simply sat, not wanting to look his friend in the face. Annie got to her feet and switched off the television. She turned to Mitchell, "Was it _you_?!"

Mitchell gritted his teeth and fixed his eyes on his hands. George sat back from him slightly, "Mitchell?"

The vampire looked up, into Annie's eyes and then George's. They both looked utterly dazed and Mitchell frowned in response. George leapt to his feet and took his glasses off, "Why Mitchell? Why couldn't you just leave it?!"

"They attacked us George!" Mitchell got to his feet and glanced between his two friends, "They're lucky I didn't do anything else!"

Annie's hand slapped to her mouth and she stamped her foot angrily, "They're just _kids_ Mitchell! And now- now they know what you are!"

Mitchell ran his hand through his lank hair and looked at George for confirmation. George put his glasses back on and spoke quietly, "That's it then", he raised his arms widely and his voice stepped up an octave, "We're screwed! We'll have to run away! They know what you are and it's only a matter of time before they find out about me and Annie!"

Annie wrapped her cardigan around herself tightly and a tear trickled down her cheek. Mitchell frowned deeply and reached his hand towards her but she stepped away. Mitchell folded his arms across his chest and spoke sternly, "I'll sort this out, I promise".

"How?" asked George, "Herrick's dead! The vampires have no say in the police anymore Mitchell! There's no one to protect you!"

Mitchell rubbed his face with his hands and moved into the hallway to get his coat, "I'll sort it". With that he marched out of the house, leaving Annie and George standing dumbfounded in the living room.

The door slammed and George turned to look at Annie; she had her arms folded tightly across her chest and she was staring into space. George stepped towards her and placed his hands on her shoulders, forcing her to look into her eyes, "We'll be okay, Mitchell will figure something out".

Annie shrugged away from his touch and wiped the tears from her cheeks, "What if he can't? What if we have to move away?" A vase flew across the living room and hit the wall behind the television, George jumped. Annie continued to speak, "I don't _want_ to move away George!"

*****

It was around nine thirty and already dark when Mitchell decided to go into the hospital. He stepped through the automatic doors and made his way to the lifts where he pushed the button with his thumb. The children's ward was on the third floor, although why the teenage boys would be considered innocent children was a puzzle to Mitchell. He made his way along the pale blur corridor, windows on either side, and finally reached the children's ward.

Outside, on either side of the double doors that led into the ward, were two policemen. They were chatting quietly to one another and didn't even notice Mitchell as he strolled past them along the corridor. He decided it would be too risky to simply march right onto the ward and talk to the boys and so he circled around to the opposite end to where the policemen stood. He placed his hands on the window and peered through the glass where he could see the boys in beds beside each other. One of the boys, the one that had been carrying the carrier bag, was asleep. The other was sitting up chatting to a woman of around thirty, his mother Mitchell guessed.

"Hey, what're you doing?" It was one of the policemen. He was tall and well built with short blonde hair and he started to march towards Mitchell with a satisfied look in his eyes. Mitchell turned looking innocent and smiled,

"I was just looking for my, err, wife", Mitchell put his hands in his pockets as he spoke to look innocent, but the policeman folded his arms and raised an eyebrow. Mitchell continued, "My son was brought in. Appendix burst and the wife was in a hell of a state", he smiled at the officer.

The policeman squinted at Mitchell suspiciously and pointed to his left hand, "No ring".

Mitchell rubbed his ring finger with his thumb and scratched his head, "Yeah, um, I lost it".

The officer nodded and looked into the children's ward through the window, "So, is she in there?"

"Who?"

"Your wife. Where is she?"

Mitchell rocked on his heels slightly, "She must have taken him for a walk or something", he pointed over his shoulder with his thumb, "I should get go-"

Mitchell jumped as a loud scream echoed around the children's ward. He looked through the glass to see the boy he had frightened the previous night pointing at him and yelling, "That's him! The monster!"

The policeman looked at the boy and then at the wide-eyed Mitchell and dived forward to grab Mitchell's arm. The vampire dodged his grasp and legged it down the corridor towards the stairs. He tried the doorknob on the door to the staircase but it was locked. He shoved at it will all of his strength and the lock snapped, sending him hurtling through the open door. Behind him he could hear shouting and footsteps coming closer. He sprinted down the stairs towards the ground floor, almost falling over the cleaning lady, and ran out of the main door and into the car park.

It has started to rain and Mitchell's hair plastered to his head as he wound his way through the parked cars. He could hear the heartbeats of the policemen behind him and so ducked down behind an expensive looking red car. He put his back against the passenger side door and closed his eyes, allowing his breathing to slow down. He could hear the policeman he had spoken to; he was ordering the other man to look underneath the cars. Both men were out of breath and Mitchell could hear their hearts pumping furiously inside their chests. The vampire's mouth began to water and his eyes flooded with darkness, he hadn't fed on fresh blood for months.

He shook his head to clear it and his eyes returned to their usual hazel colour. The blonde policeman spoke up, "Shit. He's gone, let's get back inside". Mitchell heard them return inside the hospital and sighed. He got to his feet and ran home through the pouring rain. As he ran he prepared himself for the moment he would tell his friends that they had to move away. Far away.

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	7. Run

**Chapter 7 – Run**

George and Annie were sitting on the couch watching TV when Mitchell burst through the door, dripping from head to toe. George scrambled to his feet and walked towards his soaking friend, "What happened? Is it sorted?"

Mitchell looked at George with remorseful eyes and unzipped his dripping coat, it dropped heavily to the floor beside him. He began taking his shoes off, "I couldn't. The police were there".

Annie appeared in the kitchen doorway beside Mitchell and picked up his coat, draping it across the radiator as she spoke in a steady voice, "But you can sort it out tomorrow right? I mean, it's going to be okay?" She looked at Mitchell carefully, trying to read his body language. He kicked his shoes into the corner of the hall violently and dragged his hands down his face. George looked between his two friends and leaned towards Mitchell,

"Mitchell? You _can_ fix this can't you?"

The vampire turned to George and ran his hands through his soggy hair, "I-", he looked at Annie, "I don't know".

Annie's eyes widened and she looked to George for support. George took his glasses off and rubbed his forehead as Mitchell continued,

"There's no one to sort things out anymore. Now that Herrick's gone-", he looked apologetically at George, "-there's nobody to clean things up. Those lads know what I am and now the police-"

"-Police? What about them?" Annie cut him off.

Mitchell scratched his stubbled chin, "They saw me, at the hospital. They sort of chased me". George yelped and Annie started to shake her head. She dug her hands into her dark curls and closed her eyes tight. Mitchell leaned back against the wall,

"I'm so sorry", he slammed his head back against the wall, "I didn't know they would be there. And then the lad started screaming. I'm sorry". George placed his glasses firmly on his nose and raised his arms in the air,

"Well, we'll have to leave, we have no choice. They've seen you; they know who you are and they'll soon find out about me and Annie".

Annie, still clutching her head, slid slowly down the wall and sat in a crumpled heap on the floor. Both Mitchell and George turned towards her, knowing that Annie would be hit hardest by having to move away, out of the house. Mitchell knelt down beside her and placed a light hand on her back, she slapped his arm away and a few papers that had been lying on the table next to the front door gusted into the air on an invisible puff of wind.

"Annie", Mitchell tried to comfort her, to tell her that everything would be okay, even though he knew it wouldn't, but she snapped her head up and glared at him with frosty eyes,

"I don't want to leave! This is my home!" A mug of cold tea flew across the living room and smashed against the front door, sloshing the pale liquid on George's face. He swiped it off his cheek with his hand.

Mitchell clasped Annie's face in his cool hands and looked into her sad eyes, "We _have_ to go Annie. They know who I am now; they'll be looking for me". Annie frowned and something smashed in the kitchen but Mitchell felt her relax and so he pulled her into a big hug, wrapping his strong arms around the fragile ghost tightly. He rested his chin on the top of her head and inhaled her soft scent.

*****

George lifted the last hold-all into the car and snapped the boot shut, and then got slowly into the back of the Volvo. Mitchell got into the car, in the driver's seat, and Annie stepped slowly out of the house. She pulled the front door closed carefully, her hand lingering on the doorknob for an extra moment, and then she "popped" into the car beside George. Mitchell turned around to face his friends and spoke earnestly,

"Thank you. Both of you". George smiled meekly and Annie swiped a stray tear from her cheek. Mitchell started the car and Annie turned, watching as they drove away from their home, their friends, their lives.

*****

After about half an hour of silence Mitchell looked into the rear-view mirror and spoke to George, "What did you tell Nina?"

George looked up, into the mirror, but found it was easier to talk to the back of Mitchell's head, rather than the lack of reflection, "I said we were going on holiday".

Annie hit George's arm with the back of her hand, "George! We're not coming back!"

The werewolf shrugged and Annie saw his eyes fill with tears as he looked out of the car window, "I know. I just couldn't tell her we weren't coming back". In the front Mitchell's hands tightened around the steering wheel; he felt awful for dragging his friends away from where they were safe, from their home. But he also knew it was for the best.

George looked back at Mitchell, "Where exactly are we going?"

Mitchell pointed a gloved finger to the left, beyond the windscreen, "The train station, we're almost there".

"And then where?" Annie wrapped her cardigan around herself, feeling exposed.

"North. We'll get a train north".

George leaned forward, "_How_ north?"

Mitchell shrugged, "Scotland maybe? I dunno. We'll just get on a train and see where we end up". Suddenly the car veered to the right, almost colliding with a black Ferrari. Mitchell yanked the steering wheel and placed the car back into the correct lane.

"What the hell?!" George squeaked from the back seat, "Careful Mitchell!"

"It wasn't me!"

Mitchell felt the brake pedal under his foot push down firmly and the car lurched, almost sending the three friends through the windscreen. Mitchell got it back under control and headed towards the train station which was now in sight, its large dome roof protruding from behind a few almost-dead trees.

George gripped the edge of the seat and turned to Annie, "Was it _you_?"

Annie looked at him from beneath thick lashes, "Sorry".

George's grip on the seat relaxed and he placed a dramatic hand on his chest, "_Christ_ Annie! Not all of us are already dead! You almost killed us!"

Annie rolled her eyes, "Oh for God's sake George", she looked at his wide eyes and raised her hands, palms out, "Okay, sorry. I just didn't like the idea of "just seeing where we end up"", she mimed speech marks in the air, "I thought maybe Mitchell would have a better idea of where we were going".

Mitchell ran a hand through his hair, "I didn't exactly plan this out", he turned a corner and parked the car next to a large white van. George got the bags from the boot – only two as Annie didn't need clothes and Mitchell only had a pair of jeans and two extra t-shirts. It was almost 11pm and the only light was coming from the orange glow of the street lights. Annie pulled her cardigan over her head and linked the boys as they walked towards the train station, ready to discover which direction their destiny would take them in.

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	8. Games

**Chapter 8 – Games**

Mitchell inserted George's debit card into the ticket machine and pushed the numbers of his pin. The machine whirred and clicked and the tickets poured into the little metal tray. He took them over to his friends, handing them each a bright orange ticket. He turned to Annie, forcing a smile onto his worried face, "Now would have been a handy time for you to be invisible, George could have saved thirty quid", George frowned and Annie shrugged and smiled weakly before mouthing the word "sorry".

They walked through the ticket barriers and stepped onto the large, empty platform. The wind blew lightly through the station, making Annie shudder. Mitchell wrapped an arm around her shoulders, "At least it's not busy", he pulled the ghost closer and she wrapped her arm around his waist.

The train slid into the station slowly and George grabbed the bags and stepped onto it quickly, as though it would speed off at any moment. Annie followed serenely; she looked as though she was sleep walking, not really there. Finally Mitchell stepped onto the train; he took one last look around the platform and followed his friends to a seat.

There was almost nobody on the train, only a few exhausted businessmen, a couple of sleeping older people and a teenage couple that couldn't keep their hands off one another. George chose a window seat with a table; Annie scooted in opposite him and Mitchell sat next to Annie after shoving the bags into an overhead compartment. George clasped his hands together on the plastic top of the table and spoke in a whisper, "So where are we going?"

Mitchell flicked his ticket between his fingers, "Whitby", George's face seemed to crumple and Annie let out a small snort of laughter. Mitchell frowned, "What?"

"Whitby? It's a bit cliché isn't it?" Annie giggled and continued, "I mean that's where Dracula was isn't it? I vant to suck your blood", she stuck out her top row of teeth and George sighed.

"It was the cheapest, and it's not a busy city", Mitchell shoved the ticket in his jacket pocket and leaned back in the uncomfortable seat. George wiggled in his seat and tried to make himself comfortable; he stared out of the window, thinking of Nina. Annie twiddled her hair between two fingers and watched as the loved-up teenagers shuffled down the aisle towards the toilet, _ew_ she thought.

*****

George sat with his head resting on the cold window, snoring slightly, Annie had gone for a wander down the train, she'd said she was bored, and Mitchell was starting to drift off to sleep. A metallic voice bleated out of the speaker above Mitchell's head, "**Next stop Birmingham Central Station**". Mitchell tried to see outside the window but it was black outside, around midnight he guessed. George stirred in his sleep and mumbled something that sounded like "weird" and then went back to his dreams.

The train came to a slow stop and Mitchell could hear the heartbeats of at least twenty people boarding the train; he could smell them too. There were seventeen women and four men and they all decided to sit in the same carriage as the vampire. Most of the women wore a t-shirt that said _Shirley's Hen Night_ and they were all about thirty, with long legs and short skirts. A couple of the men, who were slightly tipsy, were trying their luck with the ladies but were being completely ignored.

George woke up with a start as one of the women popped open a bottle of champagne. He pushed his hands underneath his glasses and rubbed his tired eyes, "Where are we?"

Mitchell pulled his eyes from the drinking women and stretched his arms above his head, "Birmingham".

"Where's Annie?" George looked around, at the women and then down the aisle.

"Went for a wander", Mitchell's hands balled into fists as the fresh smell of the women's blood drifted through the air, he hated trains, "She'll be back soon".

George nodded as a man with a small metal trolley trotted up to the group of women. They whooped and clapped as he asked them if they wanted something to eat or drink or maybe a miniature board game. He quickly pushed his trolley away from the cheers and offered his services to George and Mitchell. Mitchell shook his head and George chose a magnetic snakes and ladders, which he set up immediately. Mitchell smiled affectionately towards his friend, always making the best of bad situations.

Annie trotted down the aisle and sat beside George, opposite Mitchell, with a big grin on her face. Mitchell raised an eyebrow, "You look happier". Annie shrugged and leaned across the table to talk to Mitchell,

"You know that boy and girl? The teenagers?" Mitchell nodded, "Well, a couple of policemen got on the train looking for them", Mitchell sat up straighter but Annie continued oblivious to his reaction, "So, the teenagers ran off and out of the station! It was like something from a film!" She smiled and raised her eyebrows in amazement. Mitchell placed his large hand on top of Annie's on the table, sending a quick electric sensation through the ghost.

"Are they gone now?" Mitchell's eyes were serious and so Annie nodded eagerly,

"Yeah, like I said, they ran off".

"No", he shook his head, "Not the kids, the police. They didn't stay on the train did they?"

Annie seemed to think for a moment and then frowned, creasing her smooth forehead, "I- I think they got off", she nodded firmly, "Yeah, they definitely got off". Mitchell's shoulders relaxed and he leaned back, closing his eyes as Annie rolled the dice and climbed a ladder with her yellow counter.

*****

It was starting to get light and the train had stopped at a few more stations since Birmingham; people started filling more and more seats in the carriage. George and Annie started on their third game of snakes and ladders, Annie having won them all, and Mitchell struggled to concentrate on getting to sleep.

Underneath the table his fingernails dug into his palms and his entire body seemed to be shaking with the need to drink. It was warm in the carriage and the smell of sweat and blood filled his nostrils - his mind - and the sound of heartbeats drummed into his ears. He squeezed his eyes shut tighter and frowned as he tried to think of something other than blood and thirst.

He opened his eyes for a second, just to see who was winning the board game, and something caught his eye. A woman at the table seat opposite was staring out of the window, her forehead resting on the glass. Her head was tilted so that her neck was tight and Mitchell could see the blood pulsing through the thick veins beneath the skin. He felt his mouth begin to water and his eyes felt hot and dark.

George was about to roll the dice when he saw Mitchell look towards the girl opposite. He thought nothing of it but dropped the dice from his hand when his friend turned back towards him with almost completely black eyes. George squeaked, causing Annie to follow his gaze; her hand darted across the table and she grabbed Mitchell's arm firmly, "Mitchell", she half whispered half hissed his name, "Mitchell!" He turned to her, the white had returned to his eyes but his irises were still dark. She shook his arm, "Stop it! Mitchell please!"

Mitchell shook his head swiftly and the hazel returned to his eyes, "I-", he took a deep breath and steadied himself, "I need to get off the train".

George bobbed his head quickly like a nodding dog and got up to grab the bags from above their seats; they could feel the train slowing down as it approached the next station and so dashed along the aisle towards the doors. Annie held Mitchell's hand and dragged him along behind her until they reached the small circular space at the end of the carriage.

The train stopped and George pushed the button to open the door; it hissed open, allowing a gust of fresh air to enter the train, and the three friends stepped off the train and onto the platform. Mitchell inhaled deeply and George began looking around frantically, trying to find out where they were; a large sign said "Welcome to Leeds". Annie's mouth fell open and she pointed towards three policemen who were charging towards them from the other end of the platform. Mitchell turned on his heels to run, only to be face to face with a tall blonde man with broad shoulders and a smug grin on his face. The policeman from the hospital.

"Hello Mr Mitchell", he said.

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	9. Trapped

**Chapter 9 – Trapped**

Mitchell stood staring into the bright blue eyes of the tall blonde man as George dropped the bags he had been carrying onto the platform. Annie grabbed Mitchell's arm and looked up at his face; he looked defeated and… scared.

The three policemen that had been running towards them stood behind the three friends so they had no ways to escape. The blonde policeman folded his arms across his chest and smiled slyly,

"Surprised to see me?"

Mitchell looked at the floor, "Not really. How did you-"

"-find you? Easy. We knew you'd be with you're friend here", he pointed at George who cringed away from his accusing finger, "The boys said you two were inseparable. And when we saw him on the CCTV well, you know the rest". Mitchell scowled and looked up into the policeman's eyes,

"What now?"

"Well", he gestured to his fellow officers, "We'll need to take you and your friend back to Bristol first of all. And then we'll lock you in the cell for a day or two, see how that suits you", he smiled, showing his bright white teeth.

Beside Mitchell George started to shake his head furiously, "No, no you can't I-"

The policeman held up his hand towards George, "I'm afraid you have no choice Mr Sands". George looked at Mitchell, frantically looking for an answer, a solution to this mess.

One of the policemen that had been standing behind the boys grabbed Mitchell's hands and secured them in handcuffs behind his back and another did the same to George. Annie let go of Mitchell's arm and stepped forward, almost nose to nose with the blonde man,

"Let them go! They didn't do anything!"

The policeman completely ignored her and Mitchell looked at her confusedly, he whispered to her, "I don't think they can see you", and Annie's hand slapped to her mouth.

"Let's go", said one of the other officers, and they marched off with the boys in handcuffs and Annie trailing behind, completely invisible.

*****

It was around 5am when Mitchell and George entered the police station at Bristol; they stood at the front desk whilst the blonde haired man, who they had learnt was called Detective Constable Greenway, gave their details to the man at the desk.

George leaned towards Mitchell and whispered to him, "It's a full moon tonight". Mitchell's eyes widened and he looked at George,

"What? Are you sure?"

George looked around as though making sure no one was listening and answered, "Of course I'm bloody sure Mitchell!"

"Right", Mitchell seemed to think for a minute and then moved forward to speak to DC Greenway, "Hey, George hasn't done anything. It's me you want".

Greenway looked over his shoulder at Mitchell and a thick smile spread across his face before he turned back around. Mitchell stepped back and George raised his cuffed hands behind his back,

"Great", his nose twitched as his glasses began to slide down, "This- this is perfect. I'm going to change and kill a load of coppers; I wonder how many laws that'll break".

Mitchell let his head fall back and he stared at the pale blue ceiling for a moment before whispering, "Where's Annie?"

George shrugged, "I don't know. And how come they couldn't see her anyway?"

This time it was Mitchell who shrugged, "No idea. But we need to find her, maybe she could help us get ou-"

DC Greenway turned around and pointed towards the cells with his thumb; Mitchell and George were shoved down the cold corridor and pushed into two separate cells. The doors slammed and they sat, alone, in the ten-by-ten concrete rooms, desperately trying to think of a way to get out of this mess.

*****

Annie stood outside of the police station with her arms by her sides; she shook her hands, as though warming up to dance, and walked up the steps to the building. As she stepped through the doors, literally, nobody even looked up. _Great,_ she thought, _I'm invisible – again_. She "popped" behind the front desk and read the computer screen: it said that Mitchell and George were in cells two and three and that they would be held until later questioning.

George squeaked as Annie appeared in front of him; he was sitting on the tiny bed with his elbows resting on his knees when she materialized. She smiled and waved feebly,

"Hi".

George looked up and met her sweet eyes, "Hey. Have you come to break me out?"

She sat down on the bed beside him and placed her hand on his thigh gently, "I don't need to. They're going to question you later today and all you have to do is tell the truth".

George relaxed slightly and then sat up straight, "How later?"

Annie looked confused, "I don't know, the computer just said later".

"It must have had a time next to it!"

Annie lifted her hand away from George's thigh and frowned, "No. It didn't. Why? What's wrong?"

George took his glasses off and rubbed his face, "It's a full moon tonight. I'll start to change at about eight".

Annie bit her bottom lip and stood up, "I'm sure it'll be okay, you'll probably be questioned this afternoon, they can't keep you in for too long", George raised his eyebrows, impressed with the ghost's knowledge of the policing system. Annie smiled and continued, "I dated a policeman once". And with that she was gone.

*****

Mitchell lay on the uncomfortable bed with his head resting on his arms. He stared at the unknown stains on the ceiling and swallowed dryly; he was feeling extremely thirsty.

Annie appeared a moment later and Mitchell sat up and shuffled over to allow her to sit down. He smiled as she perched herself next to him.

"I thought you'd done a runner", he said.

Annie smiled and slapped his knee, "I wouldn't leave my boys to take the rap for something they didn't do!"

Mitchell grinned lopsidedly and scratched his head, "But I _did_ do it".

"Yeah well", she touched the back of his hand gently, "It was a mistake". She looked towards the corner of the room where a small camera was pointing directly at them. Mitchell noticed and spoke up,

"I unplugged it".

Annie's eyebrows knitted together slightly, "But I thought you couldn't be seen on camera anyway?"

"I can't. But that would mean they would be coming in every two minutes wondering why I wasn't showing up on their little TV's. Now they just think the camera's buggered". Annie nodded and smiled.

The door opened and DC Greenway sauntered into the room, "Right Mr Mitchell. Question time". Mitchell got to his feet and walked to the door, giving Annie an _everything will be fine_ smile before he left the room.

Annie sat on the bed and lay down, feeling the area of warmth where Mitchell had been lying. "Good luck", she whispered.

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	10. The Demons Inside

**Chapter 10 – The Demons Inside**

Mitchell walked along a thin white corridor with his hands in cuffs out in front of him; he could hear the men's heartbeats that stood around him. DC Greenway's heart was pumping solidly and calmly, like a shark that knows it is in no danger because everything else around it is smaller and weaker, _shows how much you know_ thought Mitchell. The man walking behind Mitchell was another story though; the vampire could hear the man's pulse racing, causing the blood in his veins to flow rapidly. It sounded like crashing waves in Mitchell's ears.

Greenway opened a door to their left and held it open for Mitchell who walked slowly into the small cold room. Greenway gestured to a plain metal chair and Mitchell sat down firmly. His mind was swimming with thoughts, his nostrils filled with the scent of the two men and his hands balled into fists underneath the small table in front of him. The man with the racing pulse stood at the other side of the door and peered through the small window whilst Greenway sat down in the chair opposite Mitchell.

"So", DC Greenway shuffled some papers on the table and spread them out with his thin fingers, he pointed to one, a photo of one of the boys, "What did you do to these boys that's got them screaming blue murder?"

Mitchell shrugged and tried to concentrate on a crack in the floor tiles. He usually snuck a couple of blood bags from the hospital once or twice a week, but he hadn't had any in days. He was feeling it. His palms were sweating and his neck was aching. Greenway slammed his fist on the table, causing Mitchell to jump slightly, and spoke in a slick voice,

"You do realise there's no getting away from this? These boys-", he pointed to the photos again, "-they've told us everything. That you're a monster".

Mitchell looked up, into the piercing blue eyes of the policeman.

Greenway continued, "Of course, we know that you're not an actual vampire. But these kids are certain of it", he smoothed his blonde hair with the palm of his hand, "You're probably just some pervert that gets off on scaring little boys. Am I right?"

Mitchell lifted his clasped hands onto the table and scowled silently at the policeman.

"Okay fine", Greenway gathered up his papers and got to his feet, "I think we've got enough to keep you a few more days. Maybe your tongue will loosen up a little after some time under our care".

Mitchell stared at the table as he spoke, "How do you know it was me?" Greenway smiled and wafted the papers in Mitchell's direction,

"Witnesses, Mr. Mitchell. These boys were-"

"-those boys", Mitchell interrupted, "were scared. And it was dark. Maybe they were confused".

Greenway sat back down and folded his arms, "They say it was you. Hell, they screamed when they saw you in the hospital. They've identified you".

"They identified a vampire. Do I look like a vampire to you DC Greenway?" Greenway scowled but Mitchell continued, "It was Halloween for Christ's sake, everyone was dressed up. Is there any CCTV of the attack?" Mitchell inhaled deeply, trying to control his temper as he spoke, "Are you sure they even _were_ attacked?"

"They were traumatized! Had to be hospitalized for two days!"

Mitchell sighed, "Fine. So let's say they _were _attacked. Am I the only person in Bristol with dark hair and a leather coat? You've got nothing".

*****

Annie was starting to worry. It had been about 2pm when Mitchell had gone in for questioning and it was now coming up to 5pm. She paced around in the little cell for a moment or two and then materialised next to George in his cell.

George jumped briefly, as he always did when Annie appeared out of nowhere, and smiled weakly, "Hello again. Any news?"

Annie shook her head, her hair bounced as she did so, "Nope. They took Mitchell in for questioning hours ago", she fingered the ring on her right hand, "I hope he's okay".

George placed his arm around Annie's shoulders gently, "I'm sure he's fine".

The ghost looked up into the werewolf's eyes, "But what if the policeman isn't?"

George stiffened slightly, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, what if he's done something? Like something _bad_", she looked around the tiny room nervously and finally got to her feet. "Right, I'm going to go and find him".

George stood up too, "But what if they see you?"

Annie smiled, showing her pearly teeth, "Duh, I'm invisible".

And with that she was gone, leaving George to sit on the bed alone. He was starting to feel itchy.

*****

Mitchell could see the beads of sweat trickling down DC Greenway's face; he looked worried and tired and Mitchell guessed that _he_ was probably the cause. He'd been quizzing Greenway on the flimsy evidence he had and had an answer for every question the policeman asked.

"So can I go now? Seen as you clearly have no worthy evidence to hold me here", Mitchell started to get up but Greenway stood behind him and shoved his shoulders down. The policeman leaned in to the vampire and whispered in his ear,

"I know it was you you greasy scruff. And I'm not letting you out of my sight until I know you're going behind bars for a long time". Mitchell felt the anger and fury rising inside of him; he felt his teeth clench together and his muscles tighten and he felt the fury bleed into his eyes. He slammed his fists on the desk and was about to spin around and tear Greenway's throat out when there, in the corner of the room, was Annie.

Annie's eyes were wide and she dashed towards the two men and placed her tingling hand on top of Mitchell's fists. He breathed heavily and closed his eyes before opening them – they were now the usual hazel colour Annie knew and loved – and he stared at Annie thankfully. She sighed and smiled as Greenway stood up straight. He shuddered, obviously feeling Annie's presence, and backed towards the door.

"You can go back to your cell now Mr. Mitchell", he opened the door and Mitchell stood up, "I'm going to have a little chat with your friend".

*****

George was starting to feel a buzz. Not a good, _happy_ buzz but a harsh buzz. Like when he'd had too much caffeine or not enough sleep. He felt itchy and irritable and every now and then he felt like he needed to clear his throat, as though something was stuck in there, trying to leap out of his mouth.

As he sat on the edge of the uncomfortable bed, scratching his arms, the door opened and clanged against the wall. DC Greenway idled in and pointed at George with a long, thin finger, "Your turn", he said.

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	11. Howl

**Chapter 11 – Howl**

"Wh- what time is it?" George scratched absentmindedly at his forearm as he watched DC Greenway pace back and forth across the grubby floor of the interrogation room. Greenway stopped and looked at his watch,

"Almost half five, why? Do you have a prior engagement Mr. Sands?"

George blinked and placed his palms flat on the wobbly table in front of him, "No, no".

Greenway leant against the wall opposite George and began to speak as though talking to a child, "Now, we can make this as painless as possible if you just tell me what you were doing on the night of the incident".

"Right", George nodded and scratched his face, "I was at home".

"And when Mr. Mitchell went out for some "milk"-", he made speech marks with his fingers – "milk" was obviously Mitchell's made up reason for leaving the house, "-did you stay in the house?"

George nodded and began biting his nails. He felt agitated.

"And can anyone confirm that?"

George opened his mouth to say that Annie had been there with him but reconsidered when he thought about telling the policeman that he lived with a dead girl. Instead he shrugged and raised his eyebrows before saying, "I just went to bed, by myself".

Greenway smiled and nodded and pushed himself away from the wall. He sat down next to George and leaned across the table, "Look. I'm pretty sure you weren't involved in whatever Mr. Mitchell got up to that night, but I'm going to get you for wasting police time if you don't tell me what he did and why. You got me?"

George could smell the man's sweat as he leant over. He could taste it on his tongue and it made him angry. He felt hot and _tight_, as though he needed to expand, to reach out of his own body and stretch himself. He took his glasses off with shaking hands and wiped them with his shirt. He spoke quietly, "He didn't _do_ anything", he pushed his glasses back onto his nose, "Those boys must have been mistaken because Mitchell never even left the house-"

"-But he said he went for milk", Greenway interrupted, "He already told us he went out of the house".

George sat up in his chair and looked straight into the detective's eyes, his own looked dangerous, "He only said that because he thought you were positive it was him. He thought that if he said he'd been out that night, you would think the boys saw him _after_ the attack and just _thought_ it was him that kicked the shit out of them", George smiled, showing his teeth, and continued, "But he didn't go out. He stayed in all night".

Greenway blinked and his lips drew into a thin line, "You can't just chop and change your story Mr. Sands!"

"This is the only story I've given you. And it's the only one you're getting", George's hands balled into tight fists and he had to clear his throat before he could continue, "You don't have him on CCTV do you? I don't even think you've got a clear statement from the lads that were attacked do you?" George stood up and held out his cuffed hands, "Now, if you'd be so kind".

*****

"What time is it?"

"Quarter past seven".

Mitchell shifted uneasily on the metal bed. He hoped George was okay and that he wasn't spilling his guts to the detective. Come to think of it, he hoped George wasn't spilling the _detective's_ guts.

His head was spinning. It had been almost a day since he'd had blood - even the stale blood bags helped his thirst for a while - and it was starting to make him twitchy. He sat on the bed and leant his back against the cold concrete wall; he watched Annie as she paced back and forth across the room, her hair bouncing freely behind her. She stopped suddenly and threw her arms out,

"I'm going to go and see what's going on".

Mitchell stretched and yawned, "No, not a good idea. George'll probably scream or feint or something if you suddenly appear in the room. And then that twat Greenway will have him sectioned".

Annie frowned and bit her bottom lip. Mitchell watched, fascinated by her little ticks, and gestured for her to sit down next to him. She did so. He hooked his arm around her cold shoulders and inhaled the sweet scent of her hair: she kind of smelt like lavender mixed with rain. He liked it. He sat back and closed his eyes, relaxing for a moment.

Suddenly Mitchell sat bolt upright, causing Annie to tumble off the edge of the tiny bed. Her eyes widened, "What? What's wrong?"

Mitchell looked at the ghost with wide, terror-stricken eyes, "What time did you say it was?"

*****

George stood as Greenway turned the tiny key in his handcuffs; they fell off his wrists silently and George rubbed at the area where they'd been. He felt good. Good for convincing the detective that Mitchell hadn't been responsible for the attack, good for finally being some use to his friends and good for being so strong, so powerful, so angry. _Oh God._

The detective walked George to the front desk and gestured for another policeman to release Mitchell. As the policeman walked towards the cells George glanced at the clock: 7:32pm.

"Jesus!" George's squeal echoed through the reception area and the man at the desk looked at him as though he was insane. Greenway looked up from a form he was filling in and raised an eyebrow,

"Something wrong Mr. Sands?"

George looked around frantically and squeezed his lips together tightly before shaking his head quickly. Greenway returned to his form and then handed George a pen to sign the form with. George took it and his hand twitched violently, causing the pen to fly out of his grasp.

"Sorry", said George. He found another pen and signed the form.

Mitchell and an invisible Annie walked into the reception area where George was standing next to Greenway. The detective scowled at Mitchell and jabbed a pen in his direction. Mitchell signed a form and collected his car keys from the man at the desk. He then made his way to the double doors and practically dragged George as he began to twitch and writhe like a wild animal.

As the three walked into the car park Annie took the keys from Mitchell and unlocked the car door swiftly. George doubled over in Mitchell's arms and Mitchell hauled him into the car awkwardly before slamming the door and getting into the driver's seat.

Mitchell pulled out of the car park and held his foot to the floor as he drove through the streets of Bristol. Annie sat in the passenger seat, she held her knees tightly and peered back at George as he convulsed on the back seat.

"Where are we taking him?"

Mitchell looked in the rear view mirror at George and sighed, "The hospital".

Annie blinked, "The hospital? You mean where he-"

Mitchell nodded firmly, "Yeah, where he killed Herrick".

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	12. Dwelling

**Chapter 12 – Dwelling**

The car screeched to a halt in the hospital car park, Mitchell didn't even bother using a parking space, and he and Annie dived out into the dark, wet night. George had been okay for the majority of the journey but he'd started to scream at shorter intervals and Mitchell was starting to dread the silence in between.

Annie opened the door and Mitchell draped George's arm over his shoulders and carried him towards the hospital doors. Once inside they shuffled quickly to the stairs and Mitchell began dragging George's flinching body towards the basement, towards the dark room where George had torn Herrick's head from his shoulders. Annie pushed open the swinging doors and ran ahead to open the heavy metal door to the small dark room.

George screamed and his back arched painfully; he turned to Mitchell with yellow eyes and long, sharp teeth and looked into the vampire's eyes with confusion and agony. Mitchell scrunched his eyes closed and took a breath before shoving George into the tiny room. Annie slammed the door shut and pushed the bolt across with a loud clang. She looked through the small circular hole in the door and watched as George screamed and writhed on the floor.

Mitchell pulled her away and she buried her head in his chest. They held one another for a moment and then Mitchell held her face in his gloved hands. He smiled and said, "Come on. Let's go home".

*****

Annie clicked on the kettle as soon as they got back to the pink house and Mitchell unpacked the bags from the car. He smiled as he looked up at the old pub that was now their home and he thanked whatever God there was for allowing them to set foot back inside.

He dumped the bags at the foot of the stairs and flopped into the leather couch in the lounge. His shoulders ached from carrying George and his legs felt as though they were made of lead. Annie trotted into the living room with two cups of steaming tea and placed one in front of Mitchell on the coffee table. He took it and drank deeply, relishing the warm, comforting taste of the liquid.

Annie sat down next to Mitchell and held her cup in her hands. She leaned back and sighed dramatically, "Well. I'm glad all that's over".

Mitchell smiled and leaned back, "Yeah, me too", he frowned and looked at his mug; "I'm sorry Annie. I didn't mean for any of this to happen. It was a stupid mistake".

She smiled and placed a tingling hand on his arm, "I know".

Mitchell looked into Annie's loving eyes and relaxed; he smiled sheepishly and took another sip of tea before placing his mug on the table. Annie did the same.

They sat in silence for a while and Mitchell began to drift into sleep. Annie watched as his eyes closed and his face relaxed completely; she thought he looked younger when he slept, more fragile, not like the big brave Mitchell she knew. He looked worn out, not just tired but _dead_, _speak for yourself_ she thought. She traced a gentle finger down his jaw; his stubble tickled the end of her finger slightly. Suddenly Mitchell's eyes flickered open. Annie pulled her hand away from his face but Mitchell held it in his own and brought it to his lips. He kissed her ring and then each fingertip gently. Annie believed that, had her heart still beat, it would have been hammering in her chest. It felt strange, letting Mitchell, her _friend_, be so intimate, but he didn't seem to mind. He kissed her knuckles and then released her hand before falling back to sleep.

Annie held her hand to her mouth and sighed silently; had he been dreaming? Did he even know what he had been doing? She shook her head in bewilderment and then rested it on his chest. She lay there all night, listening to his unnecessary breathing and his silent heartbeat; she felt at home and at peace. Loved.

*****

Mitchell stirred underneath Annie's head as George crept through the front door. Annie stood up, carefully so as not to disturb the sleeping vampire, and walked towards George.

He looked exhausted; his eyes were deep holes and his clothes were hanging limply from his shrunken frame. Annie took his coat off and scurried into the kitchen to make some tea. George glanced towards the still-sleeping Mitchell and plodded slowly into the kitchen. He sat at the table and watched as Annie prepared some toast and tea. She brought George his breakfast and plonked down in the seat next to him, he smiled,

"Thank you".

Annie shrugged and caressed her ring with her thumb, "How was last night?"

"Okay", George took a large bite of his toast and continued, "Well, pure agony. But just the same as any other full moon", he smiled humourlessly.

Annie folded her arms and spoke in a hushed voice, "It was a close call, you started to change in the police station".

George raised the toast to his mouth and stopped with his mouth hanging open, "I- In the police station? Oh God".

"But its okay, we got you out safely. Everything's fine".

George sniffed, "Yeah, until the next time one of us does something stupid", he stared into the milky contents of his mug, "Are we _ever_ going to be safe Annie? Are we ever going to be normal?"

Annie smiled and touched the back of his hand, "I hope not". George returned the smile and looked up as Mitchell shuffled into the kitchen. He scratched his chin and smiled at George,

"Morning", Mitchell walked over to the kettle and flicked it on before looking expectantly at Annie, "Am I actually being allowed to make my own tea?"

Annie began inspecting her nails and nodded, "Yeah, why not?"

"Well I usually get shooed away from the tea-making facilities", he grinned his goofy grin but it faded when Annie simply shrugged.

George stood up and took his dishes to the sink and began to wash up. Mitchell leaned towards him and whispered in his ear, "What's wrong with Annie?"

George frowned and scrubbed harder at the already clean plate, "How should I know?"

George placed his plate and mug on the draining board and plodded upstairs to get some sleep. Mitchell took his cup of tea to the table and sat next to Annie. He dipped his head and tried to catch her eye but she started to inspect the table carefully. Mitchell sighed,

"Okay, what's wrong?"

Annie looked up with wide eyes, "What? Nothing".

"So why the long face? Is it about the attack? It won't happen again Annie I pro-"

"-Its not that".

Mitchell blanked. He frowned and placed his hand on top of Annie's cold one. She pulled it away gently before taking a deep breath and forcing a smile, "You don't remember, its fine".

Mitchell frowned again, "Remember what?"

Annie shook her head and waved a dismissive hand, "You must have been asleep. It was nothing, really".

Mitchell lifted Annie's chin with his hand and stared into her teary eyes, "Sorry. Did I do something stupid? I sometimes talk in my sleep".

Annie smiled and blinked away her tears before clasping Mitchell's hand and kissing his knuckles gently, "It was nothing, really".

Mitchell relaxed and sipped his tea as Annie watched and wondered and hoped. She really wished he hadn't been asleep, that he really _did_ want to kiss her, because right now, she _really_ wanted to kiss _him._

**Well chaps, that's it :)**

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**Hope you enjoyed it!**

**Please review!**

**I think I'm going to write some shorter Mitchell/Annie fics as I think they're fab together… also maybe some dark Mitchell ones :D**


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